Spraying apparatus and means for refilling spray cans

ABSTRACT

A combination of a self-powered supply container and a handgun for spraying parting material onto the surfaces of the molds. Fluid parting material under pressure exits from the lowermost portion of the container when in an operating position into a flexible conduit which conducts the fluid to a manually operable handgun having a conventional spray head and valve assembly clamped to a cylindrical body with a surge or vapor chamber therein. The actuation of the valve assembly also may be by a pneumatic or solenoid, automatic or semiautomatic control system. An aerosol can having a spray head on each end and with each head including a flexible tubular inlet extending into the can to near the opposite end thereof. Apparatus for refilling aerosol cans having a spray head on each end. The apparatus includes a large self-powered supply tank with a flexible tubular conduit attached to the lower end thereof. The distal end of the conduit is attached to a filler head at a filling station. The filling station includes a base with an upwardly extending rod and a reciprocable bracket secured to the rod above the base. Attached to the bracket is a filler head which accommodates the upper end of an aerosol can to be refilled. A support holds a handle in gear engagement with a bracket rod which extends upward from the bracket, through an aperture in the support adjacent the handle. Manual operation of the handle serves to reciprocate the bracket up and down to take the filler head into and out of operative engagement with a can. Removably fixed to the base is a vent block with a bleed hole therein for receiving the lower end of the spray can. A container of parting material and propellant wherein the propellant is selected from the group comprising dichlorodifluoromethane, trichloromonofluoromethane, nitrogen, isobutane, dry air, carbon dioxide and mixtures thereof.

United States Patent [72] lnventor Albert R. Morse Beachwood, Ohio [21] Appl. No. 812,270

[22] Filed Apr. 1, 1969 [45] Patented July 13, 1971 [73] Assignee [MS Company Cleveland, Ohio [54] SPRAYING APPARATUS AND MEANS FOR REFILLING SPRAY CANS 7 Claims, 10 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl 239/391, 239/5 30 [51] lnt.Cl 1105b 1/12 [50] Field ofSearch 239/337,

569, 579, 302, 375, 525, 526, 532, 600, 204, 530, 573, 349, 390, 354, 391; ZZZ/402.14

Snow, Abstract of Serial No. 773,725, filed Sept. 12, 1947, Published in 370 0.6. 757, on 1l-28-50 Primary Examiner-M. Henson Wood, Jr. Assistant Examiner-Edwin D. Grant Attorney-Fay, Sharpe & Mulholland ABSTRACT: A combination of a self-powered supply container and a handgun for spraying parting material onto the surfaces of the molds. Fluid parting material under pressure exits from the lowermost portion of the container when in an operating position into a flexible conduit which conducts the fluid to a manually operable handgun having a conventional spray head and valve assembly clamped to a cylindrical body with a surge or vapor chamber therein. The actuation of the valve assembly also may be by a pneumatic or solenoid, automatic or semiautomatic control system.

An aerosol can having a spray head on each end and with each head including a flexible tubular inlet extending into the can to near the opposite end thereof.

Apparatus for refilling aerosol cans having a spray head on each end. The apparatus includes a large self-powered supply tank with a flexible tubular conduit attached to the lower end thereof. The distal end of the conduit is attached to a filler head at a filling station. The filling station includes a base with an upwardly extending rod and a reciprocable bracket secured to the rod above the base. Attached to the bracket is a filler head which accommodates the upper end of an aerosol can to be refilled. A support holds a handle in gear engagement with a bracket rod which extends upward from the bracket, through an aperture in the support adjacent the handle. Manual operation of the handle serves to reciprocate the bracket up and down to take the filler head into and out of operative engagement with a can. Removably fixed to the base is a vent block with a bleed hole therein for receiving the lower end of the spray can.

A container of parting material and propellant wherein the propellant is selected from the group comprising dichlorodifluoromethane, trichloromonofluoromethane,

nitrogen, isobutane, dry air, carbon dioxide and mixtures thereof.

PMENTEU JUL 1 3m! 3Q 592.390

sum 1 or 3 m. l 40 36/38 34 32 28 3O 52 3| 22 2o 27 M g I 44 L FIG.2

'- IINVENTOR. v ALBERT R. MORSE FIG.3 I

ATTORNEYS PATENIEDJuLmmn SHEET 2 OF 3 INVENTOR. ALBERT R. MORSE s z wwzwoanz ATTORNEYS PATENIED JUL 1 3 I971 SHEET 3 UF 3 INVENTOR. ALBERT R. MORSE ATTORN EYS SPRAYING APPARATUS AND MEANS FOR REFILLING SPRAY CANS BACKGROUND AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF-TI-IE INVENTION Aerosol spray cans used for hair spray, insecticides, etc. are old and well known in the art. One of the problems which exists with conventional spray cans is the single spray head which is permanently attached by crimping to one end and which has given spray direction (side or end orifice) and produces either fine spray or coarse spray. When used to spray parting material onto mold surfaces, it is often desirable to give a heavy coating on some molds and a fine or light spray on others. Plural nozzles in a single can or plural cans with diverse nozzles are needed.

Another problem with conventional spray cans is that they are used only once and then become rubbish. Thus, there is a need in the art to provide a refillable spray can to reduce expense. It is an object of this invention to provide a refillable spray can having a plurality of spray heads, one on each end. This allows at least two different orifice openings with only one can. 1

It is another object of this inventionto provide a spray can having at least two spray heads thereon, one on each end thereof.

When spray cans are used in the operation of spraying parting'material, it is much more economical to have a refillable spray can which may be refilled from a large container of the arting material than to discard the can after it is empty. It is an object of this invention to provide apparatus for refilling spray cans having spray heads on each end of the can.

Spray cans are often to small to contain an adequate supply of parting material to be sprayed in a given molding apparatus over an extended period of time, such as sprays for mold surfaces, rust preventative for the underside of a car, etc. Such would be too large and heavy for convenient manual manipulation. Also, pilferage is a problem with easily portable small cans. Thus, there is a need in the art to provide a spraying device operatively connected to a large quantity of parting material which is too bulky to carry away in a lunch pail. It is an object of this invention to provide a spray gun for parting material adapted to be attached to a large-volume container of parting material. This invention includes structure which is an improvement over that disclosed by J. C. Miller in U.S. Pat. No. 2,888,176, issued May 26, I959. The parting material is ordinarily under pressure in the container due to an incorporated pressurizing agent or propellant.

Another problem exists with manually controlled molding systems wherein it is necessary to periodically spray the mold surfaces with the parting material. It is important that uniform spraying of the mold surfaces be conducted without continual manual supervision. It is an object of this invention to provide an automatically controlled spray system whichperiodically sprays a consistent amount of parting material onto mold surfaces in relation to a timed sequence.

Other molding operations require an operator to be on the job observing the operations at all times. Frequently, it is necessary to spray the mold surfaces with a coating of parting material. It is often desirable to mount the spray gun on the molding machine housing and to provide for a specific quantisemiautomatic spraying device by adapting sucha device to the novel spray gun body disclosed herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a diagrammatic view of a self-powered container, one end of a flexible conduit being attached to the lower end thereof and a manually operable spray gun attached to the other end;

I tially in section;

FIG. 3 is a plurality of valve assemblies which are usable interchangeably with the valve assembly of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a refillable aerosol can with a spray head on each end;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an aerosol can being refilled by the refilling apparatus of this invention;

FIG.'6 is a right side elevational view of the filling station and aerosol can of FIG. 5 with the bracket and automatic filler shutoff headin can-filling position; 7 FIG. 7 is a left side elevational view of the filling station and aerosol can of FIG. 5 with the bracket and automatic filler shutoff head in retracted position;

FIG. 8 is an exploded view of the bracketattachmentand filler head of this invention, partially in section;

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic view of a mold, an automatically controlled spray device and the control mechanisms; and

FIG. 10 is an elevational view of three different spray-actuating mechanisms.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a large inverted container 10, containing parting material for mold surfaces and-the pressurizing propellant is shown with a support 12 holding it in a stable inverted position. Preferably, the propellant'includes Freon ll, Freon 12, isobutane, nitrogen, dry air, carbon dioxide or mixtures thereof. One particularly effective propellant has been a mixture of nitrogen and dichlorodifluoromethane. A manually operable valve 14 is connected to the container 10 to control the discharge of pressurized parting material. The support 12 is used as a handle when moving the container 10 and it serves also to protect the valve 14 from impact damage. Conventional parting or mold-release materials available on the market, such as silicones, oils, waxes, etc., are used in the preferred embodiment of this invention. Attached'to the valve 14 is a flexible conduit 16 which conducts the fluid parting material from the container 10 to a manually operable spray gun 18. The conduit 16 is connected to a hollow fitting 20 which threads into an opening 22 in the body 24 of the spray gun.

As best seen in FIG. 2, a duct 26 extends through the body from the opening 22 to a counterbore or enlarged surge chamber 28. A cone-shaped surface 27 flares out from the duct to the surge chamber. The counterbore 28, duct 26 and opening 22 are generally axially aligned. External threads '30 on the body 24 generally circumscribe the counterbore 28 and are of such a configuration as to prevent unscrewing ofthe handgun cap or valve retainer wheneverthere is residual pressure inside the valve gun body. A 60 V-shaped thread is used with fine tolerances and enough threads such that manualdisengagement is impossible due to friction on alternate thread faces whenthe system is pressurized. Three annular grooves '31 are formed in the body 24 near the other'end as a gripping surface.

Structurally, the body 24 of the spray mechanism is very simple in design. The threads, grooves, passageways, etc. are so designed as to be easily machined from commercially available bar stock without the necessity of employing special tools or sophisticated lathe operations. An annular shoulder 32 near the counterbored end of the body 24 serves as a sealing surface for an elastomeric O-ring 34. When in assembled position, the O-ring is sandwiched between the shoulder 32 on the body andan outwardly extending flange 36 on. the valve assembly 38.-Any standard commercial l-inch cup" valve.assembly may be used.

The valve assembly 38 as illustrated includes an actuating lever 40 which is adapted to depress a valve pin which opensa valve (not shown) contained in the housing 42. material sprays from an orifice 43 on the opposite side of'the gun, 18 from the finger of the operator. The valve assembly is fed by. a flexible inlet tube 44 which extends to near the bottom ofthe counterbore. Upon assembly, it has been found that the flaring junction 27 between the passage 26 and the counterbore 28 tends to center the tube 44-near the center of the body 24 and facilitate the assembly operation and prevent bending of the tube.

A hollow cylindrical cap 46 is internally threaded 48 and is adapted to engage the external threads 30 on the body 24. An inwardly extending shoulder 49 on the cap 46 clamps the valve assembly flange 36 against the O-ring 34. The cap 48 is knurled 50 on its exterior for easier gripping during assembly and disassembly. As seen in FIG. I, when the cap 46 is threaded to the body 24, the actuating lever 40 extends above the cap for manual actuation or, as subsequently will be discussed, for solenoid or pneumatic automatic control operations.

Special structure is provided within the cap 46 to protect the threads 30 on the body 24. It includes an inner cylindrical surface 51 of an extension which is adapted to extend past the threads 30 into closely surrounding relationship with the cylindrical surface 52 of the body 24. When the cap and body are operatively connected, it is desirable to prevent dust and foreign matter from contacting the threads 30 and 48 and possibly fouling the easy handtight connection. Grit and dust are common hazards in any factory, and it is important to isolate such threaded parts where possible. Also, the extension of the cap 46 prevents burring of the threads 30 should the handgun accidentally strike some sharp-cornered surface.

The actuating lever 40 and valve pin are conventional apparatus and the valve assembly 38 of FIG. 2 may be replaced by any of the valve assemblies shown in FIG. 3 or either of the two shown on the ends of the can 65 in FIG. 4. All of the spray heads shown are standard pieces of equipment which may be ordered in bulk from various companies at low cost. Many other equally effective mass produced, inexpensive valve assemblies are available on the market. It should be emphasized that the particular spray gun 18 is structured to receive, interchangeably, any of the many hundreds of commercially available spray heads or spray assemblies currently on the market. That is because the industry has standardized the diameter and curvature of the cup shoulder 36 on the as-v sembly. This interchangeability is an important feature of the invention in that one may quickly attach a fine spray, side opening head, an end opening head having a coarse spray, etc. in the gun. Spray heads per se, may have end or side spray orifices, they may have fine or coarse sprays or they may have snorkel, fan or metered flow patterns. Any particular orifice opening or attitude may be substituted into the spray gun 18 as desired by the operator as the work dictates. The spray heads shown are merely illustrative of many of those available on the market, each having a groove about its periphery.

The manually operable spray gun I8 is convenient and desirable in some molding operations where an operator is always on duty to observe the operations and to manually spray the mold surfaces periodically, as needed. However, it is sometimes desirable to speed up the operation by providing a semiautomatic spraying operation. In this semiautomatic type of equipment, the spray gun 18 is rigidly mounted alongside the molds and periodically the operator of the machine will simply press a button which will cause the spraying to take place. The pattern of spray and the duration thereof may be automatically controlled by other equipment, such as illustrated in FIG. 9. This may include a sweep-mounted spray system with a modular support structure holding the gun carrier. The sweep may be mounted so as to operate horizontally or vertically through a l2, 18 or 30 inch stroke. A limit switch could prevent mold closing until the sweep cycle has been completed.

For the same reasons that the semiautomatic system is useful, a fully automatic spraying device may be used. As illustrated in FIG. 9, a counting device 54 monitors the number of reciprocations of the molds 55 and, following a given number of reciprocations, will actuate the spray gun 18 to spray a uniform coat of mold-release fluid onto the mold surfaces. The full operation is controlled by an automatic control device 56. The three indicated control knobs 57 are merely illustrative and could be designed to control, for example, the duration of spray, the number of reciprocations between each spraying sequence and the time delay between the retraction of the molds and the time the spraying begins. Other variable operations may be controlled if desired, such as a limit switch at 54 to stop or start the spray instead of or in addition to the counting device.

FIG. 10 shows from right to left, l the spray gun 18 as it is used in a manual operation, (2) the same spray gun body 24 threaded into a housing 58 and actuated by a solenoid device 60, and (3) the same body 24 threaded into a housing 62 actuated by a pneumatically controlled device 64. Obviously, the pneumatic or solenoid controls will be used with either the semior fully automatic control systems. In operation, the actuating lever 40 is removed from the valve assembly 38 and the valve pin is positioned in either housing 58 or 62 to be depressed by a rod or piston (not shown.) with the depression being automatically controlled. Similarly, any other conventional valve assembly could be used in this combination.

Observing FIG. 4, the spray can 65 has a plurality of spray heads, one on each end. One spray head may be for coarse spray and the other for fine spray or as illustrated, a head 66 having a side orifice supported on a short tube 67 and another head 68 with an end orifice is supported on another short tube 69. The heads 66 and 68 may be removed and replaced by any one of the heads shown in FIG. 3 or other commercially available heads, this being merely a matter of choice or need as dictated by the work involved.

The remainder of the valve assembly is ordinarily fixed to the can 65 and permanently in place with the valve conventionally being spring biased to closed position. As shown in phantom, flexible tubes 71 and 73 extend from the valve assemblies toward opposite ends of the spray can. Each tube is connected to a valve assembly and terminates in free ends 77 and 79 near the opposite end of the can. The reason for this structure will be explained subsequently.

The dual-ended spray can is found to be most effective, safe and useful and it is desirable to structure the can whereby it may be refilled periodically as needed. Apparatus for such refilling is shown in FIGS. 58 and is indicated generally at 70. A container 10 similar to the container shown in FIG. I with the support 12 and manual valve 14 attached, sits adjacent the refilling apparatus. The conduit 16 conducts fluid from the lowermost portion of the container to the refilling apparatus or filling station 70.

The filling station 70 includes a base 72 with an upstanding rod 74. Two grommets 76 and 78 slidingly circumscribe the rod 74 and hold a reciprocable bracket 75 and a handle support 80 in fixed position relative to the centerline of the rod 74 and for up and down reciprocation of the bracket. The bracket 75 supports a filter assembly 82, a supply line valve 83, the body 24 and a spring-loaded filler head assembly 84 which includes the sealing O-ring 34 and a transfer valve 85 therein. Conventional tube fittings as necessary are provided to connect the flow-regulating components.

A handle 86 is manually operable to cause the bracket 75 and attachments to reciprocate back and forth toward the base 72. A vertical height adjustment is provided adjust the position of the filler head 84 relative to the bracket to allow for filling of different sizes of cans. This includes a threaded sleeve 87 on the upper end of the bracket rod 88. The handle support 80 is clamped to the rod 74 by a setscrew 89 and may be roughly adjusted to set the height of the filler head 84 above the base 72. Then the sleeve 87 is adjusted on the bracket rod 88 to limit the downward extension of the head 84 upon rotation of the handle 86.

The cooperating gear engagement of the handle 86 and the bracket rod 88 is generally conventional structure and is used, for example, in drill presses where the handle is pushed downward causing gear teeth on the handle extension 90 to mesh with gear teeth on the bracket rod 88 and force the filler head 84 downward along with the other elements fixed to the bracket 75. However, in conventional structure the bracket 75 is usually spring biased upward; in the preferred embodiment of the instant invention, the bracket 75 is spring biased downward. This is clearly optional with the operator.

Removably attached to the base 74 is a vent block 92 with a bleed hole 94. The lower end ofa can 65 to be refilled will rest on the vent block and with a downward force exerted by the filler head 84, the block 92 will depress the juxtaposed valve pin (the spray head having been removed) and open the valve to the atmosphere through the bleed hole 94.

Observing FIG. 8, the body 24 clamped in the bracket 75 by a setscrew 96 is identical to the body 24 used in the spray gun assembly. This gun body 24 is thus shown to be universally useful in the several spraying systems embodied in this invention.

in operation the valve 14 is first opened and then the valve 83 is opened. A refillable, double-ended aerosol can, such as the can 65 in FIG. 4, is then prepared for refilling. First, the spray heads 66 and 68 are removed. The can is then ready to be placed on the bent block 92 with the valve pin 69 of the lower spray head 68 extending downward into the vent block. The handle 86 is first raised, the can 65 is placed on the vent block 92 and the handle is lowered to bring the filling head 84 into contact with the upper section of the can. As the springloaded transfer valve 85 in the filler head 84 is compressed against the top of the can, it opens to allow parting material under pressure to open the upper can valve and flow from the container through the flexible conduit 16 and the filter assembly 82 into the can through the filler head 84. The pressure of the propellant incorporated in the parting material forces the transfer of the liquid contents from the container 10 to the can 65.

Observing FIG. 4, it is seen that the liquid parting material will flow downward through the flexible tube 71 to the bottom of the can 65. As the liquid level rises in the can 65, gas is forced out of the can through tube 73 and the open lower valve assembly. Because the inlet end 77 of the flexible tube 73 attached to the lower valve assembly is near the top of the can, the parting material will not overflow and exit from the can through the vent block 92 until the can is properly filled. Thus, there is a clear indication to the operator that the can is correctly filled when the parting material begins to flow out of the bleed hole 94; and it cannot be filled to dangerously unsafe pressures or volumes as the necessary head space is automatically controlled by the length of the dip tube 73.

It is thus clear that it is only necessary to wait until the parting material begins to flow out of the vent 94 to determine when the can is adequately filled. This eliminated the need for a flow regulating or pumping device which could be attached to the filling station 70 and which would measure the flow rate and automatically terminate the flow of parting material when a given volume of material had been forced into an unvented can or a standard can not having the safety feature provided by the double tubes 71 and 73.

The preferred embodiments of this invention have been illustrated and described, however, it is understood that the language and illustrated embodiments are not intended as the limitations on the invention. Various modifications will readily occur to those having ordinary skill in the art (i.e., refilling spray cans with other materials) and such modifications are within the scope of the invention as disclosed. It is intended that the invention be limited only by the appended claims.

lclaim:

1. An improved spray device comprising:

an elongated generally cylindrical body having a length at least twice its outer diameter for convenience in handling with a threaded fluid inlet at one end for receiving a threaded hollow fitting, said fitting being connected by an elongated conduit to a source of pressure and material to be sprayed.

a counterbore in the other end of said body, said counterbore having a depth of substantially the same axial length or reater than its inner diameter.

said ody end adjacent said counterbore having a radially directed flat surface portion.

a fluid passageway through the body providing fluid communication between the inlet and the counterbore, said passageway having a smooth cylindrical wall which merges into said counterbore.

V-shaped threads on the body exterior radially of the counterbore to receive complimentary interior threads of an elongated cap on the end of the body adjacent said counterbore,

said cap having said complimentary threads intermediate its ends and axially spaced therefrom to provide a cap extension over all of the exterior body threads to protect them from damage, dust and foreign matter.

said cap further having an opening defining radially inwardly directed shoulder at its end opposite said extensions and spaced from said interior threads.

a replaceable spray valve assembly having a radially outwardly extending shoulder, said assembly having an overall diameter greater than both the diameter of the opening defined by the radially inwardly extending shoulder on the cap and the flat radially directed surface portion adjacent said counterbore.

said valve assembly shoulder having a groove about its periphery and an elastomeric annular seal in said groove such that when the cap and body are threadedly engaged, the valve assembly shoulder is clamped between the radially inwardly extending shoulder of the cap and the flat radially directed surface portion adjacent said counterbore with said surface portion compressing said elastomeric annular seal in said groove in the valve assembly shoulder to provide a fluidtight seal with the valve assembly extending partially into the counterbore to define therewith and with said passageway an enlarged surge chamber from which a spray head associated with said valve assembly can draw material to be sprayed despite the orientation of the spray device, and

said body and said cap each having gripping means provided on the exterior thereof to facilitate assembly and onehanded operation of the device.

2. The device of claim 1 including an inverted container of fluid and means for conducting said fluid from the bottom of said inverted container to the inlet ofthe body.

3. The device ofclaim 2 including manually operable means for stopping fluid flow from the container to the body.

4. The device of claim 2 including a manually operable valve connecting the container to the conducting means.

5. The device of claim 1 including automatic control means associated with the valve assembly for controlling the direction and duration of spray from the head.

6. The device ofclaim 5 wherein the valve assembly is actuated by pneumatic means.

7. The device ofclaim 5 wherein the valve assembly is actuated by solenoid means. 

1. An improved spray device comprising: an elongated generally cylindrical body having a length at least twice its outer diameter for convenience in handling with a threaded fluid inlet at one end for receiving a threaded hollow fitting, said fitting being connected by an elongated conduit to a source of pressure and material to be sprayed. a counterbore in the other end of said body, said counterbore having a depth of substantially the same axial length or greater than its inner diameter. said body end adjacent said counterbore having a radially directed flat surface portion. a fluid passageway through the body providing fluid communication between the inlet and the counterbore, said passageway having a smooth cylindrical wall which merges into said counterbore. V-shaped threads on the body exterior radially of the counterbore to receive complimentary interior threads of an elongated cap on the end of the body adjacent said counterbore, said cap having said complimentary threads intermediatE its ends and axially spaced therefrom to provide a cap extension over all of the exterior body threads to protect them from damage, dust and foreign matter. said cap further having an opening defining radially inwardly directed shoulder at its end opposite said extensions and spaced from said interior threads. a replaceable spray valve assembly having a radially outwardly extending shoulder, said assembly having an overall diameter greater than both the diameter of the opening defined by the radially inwardly extending shoulder on the cap and the flat radially directed surface portion adjacent said counterbore. said valve assembly shoulder having a groove about its periphery and an elastomeric annular seal in said groove such that when the cap and body are threadedly engaged, the valve assembly shoulder is clamped between the radially inwardly extending shoulder of the cap and the flat radially directed surface portion adjacent said counterbore with said surface portion compressing said elastomeric annular seal in said groove in the valve assembly shoulder to provide a fluidtight seal with the valve assembly extending partially into the counterbore to define therewith and with said passageway an enlarged surge chamber from which a spray head associated with said valve assembly can draw material to be sprayed despite the orientation of the spray device, and said body and said cap each having gripping means provided on the exterior thereof to facilitate assembly and one-handed operation of the device.
 2. The device of claim 1 including an inverted container of fluid and means for conducting said fluid from the bottom of said inverted container to the inlet of the body.
 3. The device of claim 2 including manually operable means for stopping fluid flow from the container to the body.
 4. The device of claim 2 including a manually operable valve connecting the container to the conducting means.
 5. The device of claim 1 including automatic control means associated with the valve assembly for controlling the direction and duration of spray from the head.
 6. The device of claim 5 wherein the valve assembly is actuated by pneumatic means.
 7. The device of claim 5 wherein the valve assembly is actuated by solenoid means. 